


High, High Hopes

by orphan_account



Series: Hijacking the Soft Wars AU [3]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Brothers, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Gen, How Rex got his scar, Hurt/Comfort, I just wanted to write about bros being bros, Little Brothers, Mando'a, Protective Older Brothers, Soft Wars, Survival Training, The Author Regrets Nothing, Wilderness Survival, how cody got his scar, this fic got out of hand
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-05-12
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:42:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24131524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Rex stows away on the ship taking the Shebse to their Final Assessment before graduation. They all end up with more than they bargained for.Set in the Soft Wars AU by Project0506
Relationships: CC-2224 | Cody & CC-3636 | Wolffe, CC-2224 | Cody & CC-6454 | Ponds, CC-2224 | Cody & CT-7567 | Rex, CC-5052 | Bly & CC-2224 | Cody, CC-5052 | Bly & CC-2224 | Cody & CC-6454 | Ponds & CT-7567 | Rex & CC-3636 | Wolffe, CC-5052 | Bly & CT-7567 | Rex, CC-6454 | Ponds & CC-3636 | Wolffe, CT-7567 | Rex & CC-3636 | Wolffe
Series: Hijacking the Soft Wars AU [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1725256
Comments: 42
Kudos: 295
Collections: Open Source Soft Wars





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> _Had to have high, high hopes for a living  
>  Shooting for the stars when I couldn't make a killing  
> Didn't have a dime but I always had a vision  
> Always had high, high hopes_
> 
> From _High Hopes_ by Panic! At the Disco
> 
> So…the first battle of Geonosis…lots of bad things happened there, not sure how it stands in this AU. So keeping things about how the boys started out vague around here…
> 
> Also, bit of head canon here to make this work, by the time Domino graduated from Kamino, the war had been going on for a while, so they didn’t have the time or resources to send batches off planet for their final test, hence the test that took place in the simulation, but this one does not.

Cody stretched as he emerged from the small craft and took in the planet's surroundings. The site of their final test as cadets. They were expected to survive in a semi-hostile environment for the next five days with no backup, on their own for the first time.

If they passed, which they would, Cody would accept nothing less and neither would anyone else, then the Shebse would be named full Command Clones and be shipped off to their respective assignments. They would be spread across the galaxy, probably assigned Jedi generals and take their place at the forefront of the war effort.

Bly and Ponds pulled up beside him, buckets on swivel as they took in the terrain while Wolffe jumped out of the cockpit. They’d chosen the landing spot, the first part of the test really, after spending several days studying topographical and geographical maps of the planet. A small open area, flat and surrounded on all sides by trees. Half a click away from water and dotted with several large black boulders anchoring the space. Those had been the deciding factor in the end, more important than easy access to water even.

“This is gonna be great!” Ponds grinned, throwing his arms around Cody and Wolffe, dragging them into a hug under duress. Of course, for as much as they could very well die on this mission, some of Cody’s brothers saw it as an opportunity for one last hurrah.

“Ponds, if you don’t get off me I’m going to cut off your-” Wolffe didn’t get to finish his sentence, as all four of them were distracted by the sound of movement from behind the ship. Tightening their grip on their blasters they fell into formation without a thought. Cody on point, Bly covering the six with Ponds and Wolffe in the middle they crept cautiously around the side of the ship

“What kind of animals did the report say were on this planet?” Cody asked lowly, leading around the corner of the ship with his barrel first and then his helmet.

“Nothing bigger than an Ackley.”

“Or quite as ugly.”

“Just as deadly though.”

Cody rolled his eyes. Leave it to his brothers to give him information while telling him absolutely nothing.

“Clear,” He muttered once he’d sighted the other side of the ship.

_Thud_

Cody jumped back and all of them raised their blasters to point at their ship's rear hatch. The sound was coming from _inside_.

Bly and Ponds exchanged a look.

“Well, whatever it is…it’s alive.”

Another thud and then a just barely audible voice that sounded confused and a little pissed had Cody straightening and dropping his barrel toward the ground.

“And speaks Basic.”

Gritting his teeth, Cody stepped forward and smacked his hand against the release hatch on their pod. Slowly the back hatch unsealed, hydraulics hissing as the hatch descended toward the ground and exposed the small storage compartment at the back.

There, among the rest of their supplies for the week and tangled in a few loosened power cables, was a long-limbed, blonde haired, upside down stow away.

“Rex?” Bly tilted his head as far over as he could to try and look at their younger brother head on, “that you?”

“Su’cuy ori’vode!” Rex greeted brightly. Using Mando’a was a blatant attempt at manipulation but Rex did not consider himself above it. Not with three looks of identical anger and only one of amused confusion aimed at him.

He’d been hoping for amusement from both Bly _and_ Ponds at least.

A growl that wasn’t quite words erupted from Wolffe and he holstered his blaster with more force than needed as he stepped forward, reaching for the knot of cables around Rex’s foot at the top of the hatch. A stream of blood was streaking from his chin to his hair, dripping slowly on the bulkhead below. Rex let out a little yelp when he was freed and dropped several feet to the ground and swore, rubbing his head.

“Language!” Ponds snapped, frowning down at the teen.

“Well tell Wolffe not to drop me on my head next time.” Rex grumbled, momentarily forgetting he’d been trying to play it cool and innocent in order to get on their good side.

“You realize if you hadn’t been stowed away I wouldn’t have been able to drop you.”

“Yeah, about that, Rex, do you realize how kriffing stupid it is to stow away in a space pod?” Ponds gestured wildly. “And why weren’t you wearing your bucket? What if we’d run into trouble? What if we’d crashed? You could've been killed.”

“I was fine.” Rex grumbled, “I knew Wolffe wouldn’t crash. He’s the best pilot of all of you.” It was said with the matter-of-fact kind of high regard only a little brother could manage and earned him a fond scruff on his hair as Wolffe and Bly busied themselves unloading the storage area. Ponds continued to glare.

Cody chose that moment to plop down in front of Rex. He’d removed his bucket and opened a field aid kit, spreading the contents across his lap. Rex watched quietly, resisting the urge to bite his lip.

Ponds was one thing.

But if Cody was mad at him Rex knew he’d be made to regret his decision for the rest of the week. The rest of his life, even.

“Cody?”

Rex’s voice was uncharacteristically small and Cody pursed his lips. He folded a sterile bit of gauze and began wiping away the blood that had dropped down the side of Rex’s face, revealing a gash along his chin under his lip.

He let his brown eyes flicker to meet Rex’s just once before returning to the injury.

“Why?”

Bly paused beside them and Ponds crossed his arms.Rex dropped his gaze to his lap. Cody waited for him to gather his thoughts and swiped a dab of Bacta along the gash in his chin, stemming the flow of blood.

“You’ll be getting your Whites soon. And graduating.” Rex muttered twisting his fingers in his lap. “This might be our last chance…I didn’t want to miss it.”

Behind them Ponds made a wounded noise and Wolffe huffed, the quiet clack of plastoid against itself evidence of his fidgeting.

Cody grasped Rex’s chin under the pretense of smoothing a bandage over the wound. His hands on either side of his face, he let his thumbs rub small circles over Rex’s cheeks. They were still round, not yet sharp and defined like the older vode. He still looked so much like the fighty little cadet Cody had snuck into their dorm all those years ago.

As he stared Rex’s eyes grew bigger and more worried. 

Cody was worried too, though he tried not to show it. He didn’t know what would happen to Rex once they were gone.

He had a plan, of course, he’d worked with 17 to ensure Rex would be placed with a squad of his own age and he had confidence his little brother could watch out for himself now, better than he could when he was the little feral nexu cub the Shebse had adopted. But still…they wouldn’t be there.

The Shebse were the last squad to take their Survival Assessment. They’d just had their last growth cycle so of course Rex had had one as well. The 5th growth cycle is the worst one. For two days, Rex could barely move without crying out in pain, his muscles torn and aching, not quite able to cope with the sudden gangly limbs and bones that had gained several inches literally overnight.

Had he been in the level with the rest of his age group, Rex would have been given time off from classes and a few of the medic clones would have made rounds, ensuring he was fed, if not extremely uncomfortable. As it was, Rex didn’t need that. He had the Shebse.

With a little help from 17, Shebse was able to put off their Assessment and instead filled their schedules for a few days with random, but not overlapping, additional classes in different parts of the city so that no trainer was ever quite certain where the squad was supposed to be at any point.

Bly and Ponds had taken turns showing up and vouching for their squamates, completing tasks and promising to retrieve their missing members who had gone mysteriously missing _they were right behind me on the way here, that’s weird_. Thankfully, no one but the Alphas took the time to get to know the cadets, so they didn’t have much trouble leaving the room and showing up a few moments later in their squamates stashed tunics _CC-2224 and CC-3636 reporting as ordered, sir!_

That left Wolffe free to stand guard and retrieve meals while Cody spent two entire days laying on his bunk with Rex curled up on his chest, too uncomfortable to sleep. He'd massaged aching muscles when the pain became unbearable, but Rex spent most of the time listening to him tell stories, give training tips, anything as long as Cody kept one hand on him and his voice never left him alone.

“Well you’re here now,” Cody said, pulling back and standing, yanking Rex up alongside him. “Better make yourself useful. Help Wolffe set up camp.”

Rex beamed.

Wolffe rolled his eyes and grasped Rex by the neck, steering him to the clearing a ways from the ship. Rex immediately ducked out of his hold and ran ahead, hollering about how they should be glad he was there, he would probably be the one to save all their lives at some point.

Cody rolled his eyes, but couldn’t suppress a fond smile.

“Cody,” Ponds voice was serious, arms folded over his chest. “They call this a Survival Assessment for a reason. It’s not a camping trip. It’s dangerous.”

Bly nodded from Cody’s other side. “He could get hurt.”

Cody let a long breath out through his nose. “He won’t. We won’t let that happen. He’ll be fine.” He glanced at his squamates. “We all will. And when we pass, we’ll place him with a good squad and he’ll finish out his training. He’ll be _fine_.”

Bly turned to him with a slant to his bucket that meant a raised eyebrow. “You trying to convince us or yourself, vod?”

Cody kept his eyes on Wolffe and Rex, who had completely abandoned building a fire and instead Rex was screeching threats as Wolffe tossed him over his shoulder, spinning in a circle until Rex proclaimed he would happily vomit on his ori’vod’s head.

“He’s the best of all of us. He _will_ be fine.”

And when Cody used that tone the galaxy dared not defy him, so Ponds, exchanging one last look with Bly, clapped him on the shoulder and smiled.

“Well then, we better keep him alive, eh al’verde?”

Bly rolled his eyes, jogging toward the unfinished camp.

“Hey Wolffe, I’m getting kinda hungry, can you spare half a snack?”

The words Rex screamed as he was tossed bodily from the arms of one brother to another were not ones Ponds approved of.

“ _Language_ , Rex!”

* * *

“What do you keep staring at, Rex’ika?”

The fire was just warm enough to keep off the chill of the night air. There was no breeze, though there was a sizzle in the air that every cadet recognized after just two weeks decanted. A storm was brewing.

Brewing, but not arrived yet.

Rex laid flat on the ground between Cody and Wolffe in the circle around the fire, hands pillowed under his head as he stared up at the stars in the, as of yet, clear night sky.

“Stars.” Rex said, no little bit of wonder in his voice.

Cody smiled, following his gaze up past the trees and where the fire cast flickering shadows on the forest around them.

“First time seeing them?”

Rex nodded. “Theres...so many.”

Cody remembered being equally awed when 17 took them on their first low orbit flight. Breaking through the thick cloud cover on Kamino, past the lower atmosphere and into the wide open _space_ beyond. Cody remembered full minutes where he forgot to breathe.

“Wait until you get to fly between them, kid.” Ponds’ voice held some of the wonder and nostalgia of Cody’s own thoughts. He was staring up at the sky much like Rex, his head resting on Bly’s armored thigh. “Nothing else like it.”

“Between them?” Rex breathed.

“Yeah. If you agree to ride in the front of the pod with the restraining belts on the way home I’ll even let you fly.”

“Really?” Rex’s head napped up and Wolffe grinned with all his teeth.

“No.”

Rex huffed and rolled his eyes. “Nerf herder.”

Wolffe rewarded the grumble by tossing a vacuum sealed package of rations in his general direction, only slightly put out when it hit the boy in the chest plate instead of his face.

“Hey!”

“Rex, eat your dinner. Wolffe, come help me finish setting up these tents.”

It wasn’t that Cody wasn’t looking forward to spending an entire week watching Wolffe needle their littlest brother into more and more of a tizzy, he just didn’t see any reason to go so hard on the very first night.

“You really think it’ll storm tonight?”

“The _Kaminiise_ didn’t send us here because it was pleasant.”

“Storm?” Rex said around a mouthful of rations, and made a face. “This is worse than the stuff they serve in the mess!”

“Well then it’s a good thing we only have enough for one night. Gonna have to find something edible around here tomorrow.” Cody said, tossing one of the two-man tents to Wolffe to set up a couple meters away. Rex was still smaller than the rest of them, but not as small as he used to be. It would be a cozy couple of nights for himself and Ponds.

Ponds was going to be thrilled.

Cody was going to make Rex sleep in the middle, just out of spite.

“The storms only clear once every six to eight days. Thats why we were able to land, and why we won’t be able to leave again for at least a week standard.”

Rex wrinkled his nose.

“Isn’t there a single planet in this galaxy where it doesn’t rain all the time?”

“Not rain storms,” Bly clarified, not looking up from his datapad where he was no doubt reviewing their mission objectives and the briefing on the hostiles they had to deal with on the planet. As if he hadn’t memorized the information days ago along with the rest of them. “Electrical storms. Prevents ground to space travel and communications. No rain. Probably a lot of wind and debris flying around. The occasional lighting strike.” He added, casually.

“Lightning?”

Cody smiled at the alarm Rex was trying very hard not to show. It was no secret that Rex was not a fan of the intense thunderstorms common to Kamino. He scuffed his hair as he passed him to rejoin the circle near the fire, purposefully nudging Ponds’ boot as he stepped over him. Ponds grumbled sleepily but didn’t move.

“Don’t worry Rex’ika. Keep your eyes open, theres an electrical buildup that precedes the strikes. And it’s attracted to minerals in the rocks.” He jerked his chin toward the large black boulders. “They’ll act as lightning rods. Should be relatively safe here in the camp.”

Rex frowned and reached for his discarded helmet nearby, jamming it onto his head quickly. He didn’t think it would help that much if the lightning rocks weren’t as effective as they hoped. But it couldn’t hurt.

Bly chuckled and winked, pointing a finger at him. “Now you’re ready for anything, kid.”

For two days the Shebse ran Rex ragged, he was here to survive alongside them and every time he insisted he could handle it, if they could do it he could do it, they let him. He helped refill canteens twice a day. Helped gather firewood and became extreamly adept at trapping their main food source, which was some sort of small mamalian creature with large ears, fur and long claws that lived in boroughs under groves of trees.

They knew there was another carnivorous predetaor around, had seen the remains of its kills (the sight of the massacre had given Rex chills and Ponds had spent the rest of the day being especially cuddly, which Rex secretly appreciated but vocally complained about). So the second night they started rotating out a night watch.

That was the one task they didnt let Rex participate in, no matter how much he argued. They said it had to do with the cloud to ground lightning that was striking more and more frequently as the week wore on, and that still had Rex nearly jumping out of his armor when it struck the boulders in camp, sending sparks and smoke flying. But Rex wasnt convinced of their excuse.

Every night he lobbied for his right to stand watch, every night they went round and round with the same arguments until Cody’s _thats enough Rex_ would cut in and that was the end of it.

But overall, things were pretty routine and Rex had almost started to wonder if all Survival Assessments were this uneventful.

Until the fourth night when things took a turn for the interesting.

Rex wasn’t sure what woke him, but he knew immediately he wasn’t the only one. They’d been sleeping in their armor every night (Rex had complained but Cody insisted it was something he needed to get used to) but a quick glance to either side showed both Ponds and Cody sitting up in the tent with their buckets on. Ponds had his blaster withdrawn, but Cody was just resting his hand on his.

Wind whipped hard against the side of the canvas tent and the air seemed warm and charged around them.

Rex pulled his helmet on and the chatter over the comm channel they’d established was a practiced kind of chaos, all the Shebse' voices overlapping in his ear.

_“Wolffe, report!”_

_“I still don’t see anything.”_

_“I hear them though. I’m going to go see what it is.”_

_“Negative Bly, stay put.”_

_“Wolffe, if something is out there I’m not going to let you face it alone.”_

_“Kriff.”_

_“Okay okay, just...hold on a second. We’ll all go.”_

Cody and Ponds both moved toward the tent opening but when Rex made to follow he was shoved back bodily.

“No Rex, you stay put.”

Rex realized the chatter from the others had cut off. Cody must have switched them to a private channel.

“But Cody I-”

“No Rex. Stay here. Wait until one of us comes for you.”

Rex started to retort when the sound that must have woken the others in the first placesliced through the electrified air. It was something between a plaintive cry and a howling call to hunt that stood the hairs on the back of Rex’s neck on end. He swallowed hard.

“Cody?” Rex flushed at how nervous his voice sounded, even inside his helmet. The image of that grotesque mass of blood and bone he’d happened upon while hunting with Wolffe flashing through his mind.

He thought he heard Cody swear.

“Here.” Cody gave Rex his blaster. “Stay put. Don’t shoot any of us.”

“I’m a better shot than you are.”

“Sure you are Rex’ika.” He said, turning to leave.

“Wait Cody!”

But he was gone, zipping the tent back up behind him.

Rex switched his helmet comm back to the main channel and listened. He would do as he was told and stay put. For now.

But he would fight if they needed him.

It’s what he was made to do.

The howling came closer and louder, until it was fillig the air around the tent and Rex realized it wasn’t just one animal. The camp was surrounded by them.

Then suddenly the comms just _exploded_.

_“Wolffe watch out!”_

_“Behind you!”_

_“On your six!”_

_“Move move move.”_

_“Got one! Little kriffers are tough.”_

_“Did you see that blaster bolt? It bounced off it’s skin, or whatever it is.”_

_“Is Cody using a knife?”_

_“Cody where’s your blaster?”_

_“Theres a soft spot under their head, aim for that!”_

_“Got one!”_

Rex looked down at his blaster, swearing when he realized he was shaking. He shouldn’t be shaking. He’d never been in a live fire exercise himself but he’d practiced at the range enough. He’d watched the Shebse do them. His adrenaline shouldn’t be effecting him like this.

_“Cody, behind you!”_

_“Look out!”_

_“Cody!”_

Rex was on his knees unzipping the tent before he knew what he was doing.

Outside the chaos was dying down already, a few creatures were darting off into the dark and Rex shot at a shadow that was loping toward Bly’s exposed back where he was kneeling beside Wolffe over someone on the ground. The blast bounced off the it’s back with a hiss but it retreated back into the darkness all the same.

Bly was barking out orders, one hand pressed to the space between Cody’s shoulder guard and neck, holding his head still, the other pressing down over his forehead and left eye. Wolffe appeared to be checking for a pulse.

"Hows he doing?" Ponds' voice was sharp but he didn't take his eyes off the dark woods around them, blaster still raised toward the shifting shadows.

"Its too dark to tell. I - there’s a lot of blood.”

Rex stood a few feet away, feeling too hot and too cold and unable to move. Cody was just so…still.

“Head wounds bleed a lot.” Wolffe said, an urgent kind of anger in his tone. “He’s unconscious.”

Relief nearly knocked Rex to his knees and he automatically tightened his hold on Cody’s blaster when it started to slip from his fingers.

“Are those things coming back?” Wolffe barked over his shoulder.

Ponds shook his head once. “I don’t think so. But I have the watch. You take care of Cody.”

Bly swore and Rex's eyes flew back to Cody’s injury. The skin was split for several inches, starting up above his left eye brow, curving around the eye socket and then down the side of his cheek.

“This is gonna need stitches. Not just steri-strips.” Bly bit his lip and looked at Wolffe, who shrugged.

“You go the best score in Basic Field Medicine.”

The eye roll Bly gave was pure Wolffe. “ _Basic_ being the operative word.” Bly huffed. "I'll need the med kit. Rex, c'mere." Rex came around to kneel beside him and moved his smaller hands to replace Bly's. Neither commented on how they were shaking.

“Keep the pressure to try and stem the bleeding.” Bly ordered, and then he was gone.

“You got this?” Rex looked up and nodded at Wolffe, who nodded back and grabbed his blaster to turn and watch their unprotected side.

"How you doin' Rex'ika?"

Rex gasped and looked down to see Cody peering up at him with his good eye.

“You’re awake.” He breathed, surprised when he was hit with another ground shaking wave of relief. “I thought you were…” He licked his dry lips and shifted. “You know.”

“Reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” Cody’s voice sounded strange. “Are you okay?”

He pulled his lip from between his teeth to answer.

"I'm not the one bleeding from my face.” Rex winced against he feeling of blood coating his fingers. “What happened anyway?”

“One of those little sithspawn got the drop on me.” Cody grumbled, the sky lit up with several flashes of lightning and Rex saw where the blood was smeared across his armor plates and greaves.

“He tripped.” Wolffe corrected dryly, scanning the woods.

“Did not.”

“Did to. He was slicing the kriffers up with his vibroblade and tripped in the dark. Smacked his head on that rock.”

The sound of his brother’s bickering was like a balm to Rex’s frayed nerves. He took a deep breath. “What about your bucket?”

“Came off in the fight. They’re pack hunters. Couple of 'em got me to the ground and I had to scramble loose. Lid came off in the process. Then it was too dark to see where I was going.”

“And you tripped.”

Cody swatted outward with one hand but hissed when Rex increased the pressure to keep him immobile.

“Don’t move.” Rex scolded seriously, then added quietly, “I’m sorry, Cody.”

Cody stilled against a wave of nausea and closed his eye. “Why are you sorry?”

Rex glared at the blood seeping between his fingers. “If I hadn’t come you would’ve had your blaster. Maybe then…”

“Hey.” Cody lifted his hand to grip Rex’s wrist in the space between his gauntlets and forearm guards. He looked up at him. “This isn’t your fault. Wolffe is right. I tripped.” Wolffe snorted, Cody ignored him. Bly returned with the medkit and a lamp so he would have light to search through it. “Having a blaster wouldn’t have changed that.” Cody squeezed Rex’s wrist once before dropping away.  
  


Bly jammed a tube into Wolffe’s hand. “When Rex takes the pressure off you'll need to wipe away the blood, then smear that on to disinfect and numb it. I’ll do my best Cody, but I can’t promise you won’t have a scar.”

"Chicks dig scars, you know." Bly added, absently. Rex let him peel his hands away and wiped them on his thigh plate, smearing them red. Rex started to move away but Cody reached out and caught his ankle. Thankful for the invitation, Rex settled down near his torso and folded his legs. He watched Wolffe wipe away the clotted blood to reveal the ragged edges of the wound around Cody’s eye and smear on the cream Bly had given him.

“How would you know a thing like that? You've never even met a woman." Ponds piped up, some of the tension had drained out of his posture now that it appeared the creatures had well and truly left off their attack.

"Thats not true." Bly grumbled, cleaning Cody’s face carefully to check for other wounds. There really was a lot of kriffing blood.

"Nala Se doesnt count."

“Oh I don’t know.” Slurred a voice from below. “The long necks are pretty, in a majestic kinda way."

Wolffe snorted again. "No doubt about that concussion."

Rex jerked his eyes back to Cody’s. "Gross! No."

"Well what species would you choose then, Rex?" Ponds chimed in. “And don’t say something boring.”

“Yeah. Ponds, you’re the king of exciting. They grow ‘em that different over in Peth dorm? 1010 certainly seems to have your attention.”

“What are you even talking about, Bly?”

“Oh Please Ponds.”

“Don’t hold out on me, Rex’ika. What’s caught your eye?” Cody cut in, somehow able to sense an argument brewing even in his concussed state. He succeeded in pulling his little brother’s attention off his injury again and made another effort to smile. “Zabrack? Rodian? You got a thing for stars. Nautolan then? You ever seen their eyes?"

Rex’s laugh came out a little too high pitched and nervous, but Cody still called it a win.

"Or maybe Hutt is more your speed." Wolffe muttered as he finished wiping down Cody's face.

"Twi’lecks are nice." Bly said, leaning forward to start the stitches at the tip of the wound on Cody’s forehead.

"Twi’lek?” Wolffe pulled his helmet off and set it beside Bly’s. “You just like how they dance.”

“When has he seen them dance?” Ponds asked.

“Doom has that sliced data pad that gets the holonet.” 

Bly began poking and pulling the needle through Cody’s skin, slowly closing the wound. Rex squeezed Cody’s hand, hoping his presence was half as comforting to Cody as it was to Rex when he squeezed back.

“You should be thanking me.” Bly said a few minutes later when he was nearing the end of the wound at Cody’s cheek. “A scar can only be an improvement to your face, Cod'ika.”

“We have the same face, Bantha Brain.” Cody said, panting a little, sweat had beaded up on his forehead and temples. Bly tied the thread and snipped it before he let out a long breath and sat back on one leg, swiping a hand down his face.

"Done. Wolffe put a Bacta patch on that and wrap it, would you? We’ll have to check his eyesight when it gets light out. We'll just need to keep an eye out for infection. Who knows what kinda germs this kriffing planet has.”

“His eyesight?” Rex whispered. He felt Cody squeeze his hands again.

“I’m fine. It’s just SOP.”

Wolffe nodded his agreement as he gathered up the supplies. Everything had gone quiet again, aside from the wind in the trees, illuminated by occasional cloud to cloud lightning.

Rex missed the stars.

"Okay, lets try and get some more rest then." Ponds suggested.

"I'll take first watch." Rex volunteered immediately.

The tilt of Pond’s helmet said he thought Rex was adorable.

" _I'll_ take first watch.” Cody said, grunting as he sat up. Four heads swirled to face him.

“You can’t be serious.”

“What? I can shoot.”

“We’re not even sure if you can see!”

“I’m fine.”

“You have a head injury.”

“All the more reason for me to stay awake.” Cody moved until he was propped up against one of the downed trees they’d drug over near the fire and put his blaster across his lap.

“You go back to sleep. All of you."

“Right.” Bly snorted, walking around to sit at Cody’s side. “And while you’re watching the camp, I’ll be watching you.”

“Suit yourself. But the rest of you might as well get back to sleep.”

Wolffe just waved a sloppy salute and made his way back to his tent, Ponds and Rex stayed, looking uncertain. Bly was busied himself by stoking the fire.

“I could stand watch.” Rex insisted, knowing it was a losing battle. It was the principal of the thing. Soon none of his brothers would be around to baby him anymore. He should get used to looking out for himself.

It didn’t occur to him that might be why they didn’t want to let him yet.

"I know you could, Rex’ika.” Cody nodded. “Go back to bed.”

With a long suffering sigh Rex relented and returned to the tent, curling up as tightly as he could with his armor. He stared through the darkness at his forearm guard, the one Cody had given him, and laid his palm over where he knew his brothers words were inside. He imagined it felt warm.

Rex nearly jumped out of his skin when Ponds joined him a few minutes later.

"Its just me." Ponds soothed, patting Rex's leg.

"I know." He huffed, affronted at Pond’s gentle tone.

Rex rolled to give Ponds his back and stared at the side of the tent, wide awake, trying to convince himself the growling he thought he heard outside was in his head.

A half an hour later Cody heard the zipper of a tent opening and lifted his arm. Seconds after that Rex dropped to the ground beside him and slid under it. Bly smiled and shook his head, returning to wiping down his blaster without a comment.

"Hi." Rex said quietly, pressed tight to his brother’s side.

"You should be asleep."

"Couldn’t.” Rex sounded grumpy. He was always grumpy when he was tired. Or hungry. Or sore. Rex was grumpy a lot.

Cody blamed Ponds for that.

"Can I stand guard with you at least?"

"You'll fall asleep."

"No I wont."

Fifteen minutes later Cody heard a soft clack and glanced down to see Rex’s helmet dropped against his chest plate. With a fond smile, he pulled him a bit tighter to his chest and shifted so Rex could mostly lay down but Cody could still keep his blaster propped up on his knee.

Bly kicked his boot.

_On watch. Declarative._ He signed

Cody sighed and Bly kicked him again.

_Affirmative. Sleep. Command._

Cody waved, less a battle sign and more an admission of defeat, and slid down so he was stretched out beside Rex with the smaller boy pressed between himself and the downed tree. He put his back to the fire and let Bly have the first watch.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No one expected Rex to make good on his promise to save all their lives at some point.

Mid morning the next day found Rex poking the fire with a stick, chin in hand with Bly's blaster beside him on the ground. He watched as Wolffe, Ponds and Bly stood a few feet away talking low.

Lightning crackled again overhead and Rex jerked toward the crack-boom sound of a tree being struck and falling nearby in the forest.

“Can you pass me that water, Rex?”

Rex whipped back around to see Cody gesturing toward a canteen near his feet and handed it to him.

“You alright?” Cody asked, opening it and taking a sip.

“Fine.” Rex muttered, back to watching the others. Ponds was gesturing wildly like he did when his argument was being shot down and he thought the others were being idiots.

“We’re not going to let anything happen to you, you know.”

Rex looked back at Cody and frowned. “I’m not worried about me.”

“Well, we’ll all be fine.”

Rex tilt in that pointedly ‘are you serious’ tilt, and Cody shrugged.

“You’re incapacitated.”

“I’m not incapacitated. I can still shoot. I could even fight if I had to.”

“Hopefully you won’t.”

They both looked up and saw the others approaching. Bly gestured for his blaster and Rex handed it to him.

“We’re gonna split up a little differently today.” Wolffe announced, arms crossed. “Ponds is gonna go with Bly to see about finding us food and refilling water while Rex stays with Cody at camp. I’m going to go climb that ridge.” He jerked his helmet toward a rise to their rear. “It’s a long shot but we think we might be able to get an emergency signal through the storm from a higher vantage point where the interference is thinner.”

“This isn’t necessary. I’m fine.”

“You’re not. You have a serious head wound and if we can I think you should get into a med facility sooner rather than later.” Bly squatted by the fire, pulling the last of their kill off their roasting spike and handing it out.

“No ships can make it through these storms anyway. This is a waste of time.” Cody muttered, looking extremely put out that he had been injured at all. Rex wondered how it was that he’d seemed so relaxed about it just moments before, when it clearly bothered him.

“It’s worth a shot, Cody. We’re doing this.”

“What about the lightning?” Rex piped up. The air sizzled from the electricity in the air, no wonder it was scrambling ground to space communications.

“I’ll stick close to the boulders, should be okay.” Wolffe answered. “They’re scattered all the way up the ridge.

“I still think someone should stay at camp with Rex.” Ponds grumbled.

“I don’t need a babysitter Ponds.”

Ponds helmet tilted toward the sky and Bly's shoulders shook just slightly with restrained laughter. “I told you.”

“Fine, fine.” Ponds stepped forward, jamming the hilt of his blaster into Rex’s hands. “Just don’t die, Little.”

Rex scratched at the small bacta patch on his chin, fiddling idly with the peeling corners.

“Leave that alone, Rex’ika.”

Rex frowned at the side of Cody’s head. He wasn’t even looking at him!

“It itches.”

“That means it’s working. If you remove it too soon you’ll have a scar.”

“I thought Bly said chicks dig scars.”

“Still. Leave the bacta patch alone.”

Rex rolled his eyes and titled back to balance on the edge of the rough cut stump he’d commandeered as a seat. Lightning crackled overhead and Cody glanced over at Rex’s small noise of alarm.

“You alright?”

Rex scowled. “Why do you keep asking me that?”

“Because you’re a baby and babies aren’t supposed to leave the next until they’re big enough to fly.”

“I’m not a baby I’m better at this than you are! At least my head’s still intact.”

Cody choose to humble his little brother in that moment by reaching over to Rex’s precariously balanced seat and giving it a little shove, causing Rex to go tumbling backwards in the dirt with a small yelp.

“You were saying?”

Rex made a rude gesture he’d undoubtedly seen on Doom’s sliced datapad and Cody tsk’d.

“Now now, Rex’ika, what would Ponds say?”

Rex rolled his eyes and got up to retrieve the canteen they’d been left, he handed it to Cody.

“Bly said to keep you hydrated.” He lifted a finger toward Cody’s bacta patch while Cody was distracted taking a sip.

“Ow!”

“Did that hurt?”

“Are you kriffing kidding me?” Cody smacked Rex’s hand away.

“Okay okay, was just checking on it.” Rex lifted his hands in surrender.

“Next time, don’t check it by poking it.”

Rex dropped his head back dramatically.

"I'm _bored_. Who knew survival would be so _boring_."

Cody shook his head. "Someday survival will be a lot more interesting and you'll be regretting those words."

"Yeah well that doesn’t change the fact that I’m bored right now." Rex kicked at the dirt.

"Here." Cody held out his blaster and holster. Rex took it and held it up.

"You want me to shoot you? I know you're hurt vod but I dont think we're there yet."

Cody rolled his eyes. "My brother’s a kriffing comedian. No, I was going to teach you that ridiculously-flashy-spinning-blaster-reholster move thing Jango does." Cody explained eloquently, twirling his index finger in the air. "You said you wanted to learn right?”

Rex's smile was brighter than if all his lifedays had come at once.

"Really? Finally! I knew stowing away on that pod would be worth it." He quickly ejected the charge unit from the blaster and wound the holster round his hips.

"Okay. So the key is to keep your thumb out if the way and-"

Rex swore and Cody's blaster went flying.

Cody gave Rex a dull look. “And thats why we eject the cartrige first."

"I did!" Rex jogged over to retreive the blaster, blowing dirt out of the barrel.

"I know. Now pay attention."

Several hours later Rex had mastered the right handed spinning move and had moved on to drilling himself on disassembling and reassembling the blaster components to keep his mind off the electrical storm that had picked up overhead, crackling through the air. Cody was mostly quiet, he'd complained of a headache and Rex suggested he go into the tent for a bit. He was more than a little surprised when Cody agreed, though he made Rex promise to wake him if there was even the hint of trouble.

Cody could be a real mother hen sometimes. He took after Ponds that way.

Still, when the hairs on the back of his neck raised and Rex became acutely aware of the fact that he was not alone, he found he couldn’t very well be upset about that fact.

Rex quickly reassembled Cody's blaster and picked up Ponds' in his other hand. He stood slowly, turning in a circle and eyeing the treeline carefully. He didn’t see anything, but that didn’t mean nothing was there.

A stick cracked as if stepped on behind him and Rex whirled around, bringing the blasters up and steadily sweeping them across the area. A rustle in the bushes and he turned again. Still nothing.

Then the howling started.

For as much as he wanted to prove he was capable, he also wasn’t stupid. And he’d been trained to fight in a group. He activated his comm.

“Ponds?”

Something in Rex’s voice must have caught his attention because Ponds response was immediate.

“What is it, Rex?”

“I think…I think something is out here. With me.”

There was a quiet curse and then Pond’s voice became urgent, breathing harsh like he was running.

“Okay, we’re on our way back. Where's Cody?”

"Asleep in the tent."

"Okay, I'll comm him and Wolffe."

Bly’s voice cut in. “Rex, get ready. If it’s the things from last night try to hit them in the eye or under the jaw. Otherwise your bolts will glance off their scales.”

“Wolffe said he’s on his way back too. He’s almost there.”

Rex swallowed and nodded. “Copy."

Rex kept his eyes scanning the trees, searching his mind frantically for the training he’d been given for live fire scenarios.

When that didn’t work, he let the voices of his brothers fill his head.

_Stay calm._

_Resist the urge to hyper focus on a single target._

_Breathe out as you squeeze the trigger._

_Don’t die._

In one instant Rex thought he was the only conscious being for miles. In the next he was surrounded.

The creatures emerged from the shadows between the trees, as if they’d been born of thin air and darkness. Long, swooping tusks and razor sharp claws glinted against flashes of lightning, inky black interconnecting scales covered their bodies everywhere except under the jaw, where they had tufts of matted fur. They prowled forward, every inch a hunter’s movements, secure in their superiority.

On instinct, Rex whirled around and fired at the creature leaping toward him, the blast hit home in the soft underjaw and the animal fell with a death screech.

The rest took that as their queue and the next thing Rex knew he was firing in every direction with both Pond’s and Cody’s blasters. The creatures kept coming, hunting howls and snapping teeth too close, far too close. One screeched when he hit it in the eye and jumped back, but many of his blasts glanced off the scales, leaving them smoking, angry, but unharmed.

They were pack hunters, closing on all sides, trying to divide his attention and looking for an opening.

He recognized the tactic from his Guerrilla Warfare class. Mela Nu would be proud.

She would also probably say Rex deserved to be taken down a peg or two by the savage beasts.

“Rex!”

A quick glance in the direction of the voice revealed Cody stepping out of the tent with his bucket on, which he’d been specifically advised not to do, and Rex tossed him his blaster without a thought. Cody came to stand back to back with him and they fired on any of the animals that got too close.

“I told you to comm me if there was trouble!” Cody snapped.

“I comm’d Ponds!”

Cody dodged a swipe of claws from one of the animals that got in close and reared up at him, coming nearly to shoulder height. A quick kick hit it square in the chest and it flew backward and Cody stumbled to retain his balance.“Pond’s isn’t here! You could have been killed!”

Rex got off four shots, none of them able to reach the vulnerable areas now that the animals were working to keep them protected, Rex wondered, somewhat distantly, if they were sentient.

“Yeah well you’re here now so quit complaining!”

The banter had served to bring some normalcy to the situation, but Rex wasn’t unaware of the number of animals that surrounded them, a ratio of _us vs. them_ that was increasingly not in their favor. He breathed a quick sigh of relief few moments later when Wolffe emerged from the tree line, shooting a path clear so he could join Cody and Rex, forming a tight defensive circle. But there still didn’t appear to be a shift in the balance of power.

“Any ideas boys?” Wolffe growled over the sound of blaster fire.

“I’m thinking, I’m thinking!” Rex yelled, and jerked in surprise when the storm overhead crescendoed with a crack of thunder and lightning flashed and struck one of their boulders. He straightened.

“Guys! I think I have an idea!”

The words that fell out of Pond’s mouth when they rounded the ridge toward camp were ones he would have smacked Rex in the head for using.

They still did not adequately express how he felt about the situation.

“Kriff. _Kriff_ there’s so many of them.”

“I see it. I see it.”

“Ponds what are we gonna do?” Bly dropped to his knee and started sniping a few of the larger creatures at the back of pack. “We have to get down there.”

“Look at them, Bly. They’re surrounded, they’re gonna be overrun. If we go down there we’ll just be overrun right alongside them.”

“So what we should just leave them?” Bly’s voice was dangerous in its incredulity.

“Of course not. But we need a plan.” Just then their comms crackled in their ear.

_“If you two were able to catch anything this morning, I think I have a plan.”_

What they were doing wasn’t working. The creatures were being held off, but not for long and not by much. Their blasters were as near to useless against them as they could get and he, Wolffe and Cody couldn’t stand their ground forever.

Rex’s eyes landed on the other two of their party, Ponds and Bly, standing at the top of the hill overlooking the camp trying to take out the creatures from a distance.

“Remember that mess of a kill I found in the forest? I think these little monsters are responsible. I think the animals we’ve been hunting are their natural prey.”

_“So? Get to the point Rex.”_ Ponds said, impatient.

“Trust me.” Rex shot two more creatures in the face and gestured at Bly. “Just throw me what you’ve got. Wolffe, get ready to cover me.”

Bly barely hesitated and Rex, trusting Wolffe to lay down cover fire, ran toward the edge of camp catching the kill of three small animals Bly tossed to him. They were neat kills, no blood spilled and they landed with a dull thud at his feet.

Rex wasted no time, grabbing the kills and scrambling up onto a nearby boulder, just barely avoiding the snarling jaws of one of the creatures before Wolffe shot it. He holstered Pond’s blaster and pulled his vibroblade out of his boot in the same motion to slit a long gash in each of the dead creatures, causing blood to spill out over the rocks.

Rex looked toward the fight. Cody was still firing, but his aim was off, his head injury doing him no favors, and Wolffe was unaware of a creature just behind his left shoulder getting ready to jump on him.

“Hold your fire!” Rex shouted. Already, a few of the closer animals had caught the scent of blood in the air and had turned their attention toward him. Immediately Wolffe and Cody stopped firing and looked, surprised to see Rex standing on one of their Lightning Boulders on the edge of camp, halfway between where they were standing their ground and where Ponds and Bly stood on the ridge.

“Wolffe, what is he doing?” Cody rasped, his headache was blinding but he forced his eyes to stay open, watching in horror as the creatures turned as one, prowling toward his littlest brother, who was doing nothing but watching them approach.

“Rex!"

Rex felt the charge in the air and counted under his breath. He really hoped he was timing this right.

A crack of thunder boomed overhead at the same moment that the creatures broke into a run toward him.

Rex jumped.

Leaping backward as far as his legs would launch him, he felt the _sizzle spark_ and heat of lightning striking the boulder and felt the explosion push him through the air further than he anticipated. Startled screams that could have belonged to the animals just as easily as his vode came from behind him. He landed face then body then legs in the dirt, and his breath left him. The world was blurry and distant and for several seconds he felt the darkness of unconsciousness pulling at the edges of his mind, but the hysterical edge in one of his brother’s voices made him push against it as hard as he could.

Through hands and worried voices and smoke, Rex coughed dirt out of his nose and groaned. Most of the hands disappeared, with one set left rolling him over and helping him sit up and gently pulling his helmet off to check for injuries.

"Rex? You with us?"

Rex blinked and slowly the images around him cleared up into the bucket covered faces of his _ori'vode_. Wolffe had a hand round his shoulders keeping him steady.

"Yeah."

"Kriff."

" _Bly_."

"He almost got himself struck by lightning! Rex! You almost got yourself struck by lightning!"

"He knows Bly."

"Rex?" Ponds knelt on Rex's other side and ripped his helmet off, "what the hells were you thinking?"

Rex blinked and turned to look past Wolffe at the boulder, a few carcasses of the hunter beasts were still smoking nearby.

"They were gonna overrun us. There were too many."

"Hell of an effective plan cadet." Bly tore his own helmet off and dropped onto a nearby stump. "Karking suicidal. But effective."

"Polycotton nerd brained karking _di'kut_." Wolffe pulled Rex until his forehead pressed against his bucket, close enough he heard Wolffe say his name like a prayer.

He waited until Wolffe released him before turning to Cody.

"I guess you're over your fear of lightning then, eh Rex’ika?"

* * *

Rex was doing his level best not to run, if one of the Kaminoans caught him it wouldn’t be pleasant. But he was _excited_. And if they didn’t hurry The Shebse were going to be late to their _own graduation_.

Not the way you wanted to start your first day as full fledged Commanders.

He burst through the doors to the dorm and was met with his four missing brothers all in gleaming white armor.

"What are you doing? If you're late they'll leave without you and then you'll be stuck here. On Kamino. Forever."

Ponds waved the idea away like it was a pesky insect.

"They literally need us to run this army."

"But then why-"

"We wanted to give you something."

Ponds pulled an object from behind his back.

Rex frowned, confused.

"A bucket?" It was bright white, standard size, just like theirs.

"Well," Cody cut in, "we wont actually be here when you graduate, to pass you any of our armor. So we managed to get our hands on an extra one."

"Oh." He took it carefully and glanced inside. "Its blank?"

Cody smiled. "Turn it around."

Rex did. On the front if the helmet, just above the visor, four small marks had been painted. Two looked like the letter Resh turned on its side and between them there were two more small angled dash marks.

" _Jai'galaar'la sur'haii'se._ " Cody said. "Jaig Eyes."

Rex looked up to find them all smiling at him with a mixture of fondness and pride. Despite not knowing quite why, his chest started to feel warm and tight.

"Its a Mandalorian symbol of honor. Awarded for acts of exceptional courage and bravery."

"Mandalorian?" Rex said, his voice far quieter than he intended. He lifted a hand to trace the marks carefully. "But I didn’t-“

"You saved our lives on that planet." Wolffe said, eyes smiling. "You did good Rex'ika. Real good.”

“Someday it will be our honor to serve beside you."

Rex didnt realize his eyes had been tugged back down to the helmet until the soft clack if plastoid against itself made him look up and his breath caught in his chest at the sight of all his older brothers saluting. Saluting _him_.

The brand new Commanders of the Grand Army of the Republic, the best soldiers Rex had ever known, saluting him, a lowly CT.

His mouth hung open for several seconds before he pulled himself together. He pulled his shoulders back and saluted smartly.

“Thank you.” He said again. What else was there?

Cody dropped his arm first and smirked as he stepped forward, grabbing Rex around the back of the neck and pressed their foreheads together.

"I'm proud of you, Rex'ika," he said, quiet, for Rex's ears only.

Rex swallowed and reached for Cody's arm, locking his hand around his forearm tightly.

"I'm gonna miss you guys."

"Gonna miss you too."

There were several moments of silence before someone started to shift awkwardly, probably Wolffe, he was always the first to break a moment.

"Alright enough of the mushy stuff. Lets go before 17 has to come looking for us."

Cody let Rex pull away and led them into the hall toward the hangar bay.

“Hey, I heard there was a Twi’lek Jedi.”

“Yeah? You think she’ll dance for you, Bly?”

Bly definitely didn’t trip over his own feet and call down evil upon Wolffe’s head in response.

“Language, Bly. Not in front of the baby.”

“I’m not a baby,” Rex piped up predictably. “And I’ve heard you say worse.”

Ponds made an affronted squawking noise. “Cody, your CT is besmirching my good name.”

“I know Ponds.”

“Well aren’t you going to do anything?”

“No Ponds.” Cody bumped his shoulder guard against Rex’s and smiled down at him. “I think he gets a free pass today.”

Ponds scoffed. “Well I don’t.”

Its was only years spent sparring with the Shebse and a general understanding of Ponds’ thought process that allowed Rex to anticipate the shove and take off running down the hall before Ponds could actually follow through.

“Get back here you little Squid!”

Cody sighed and Wolffe and Bly fell into step beside him.

“Those two are going to command an Army someday.”

Cody sighed again.

“I know.”

Force help them all. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by the[Soft Wars AU](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1683775) by @Project0506. If you haven't started reading it yet...you must hate awesomely written, engaging, humorous, soft soft content. And if that's the case...I really don't know what to say about that.

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the[Soft Wars AU](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1683775) by @Project0506
> 
> Review if you'd like!

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Not Yet](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26154718) by [TexWash](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TexWash/pseuds/TexWash)




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